Anchor Bible Series

The Bible in English
Old English (pre-1066)
Middle English (1066–1500)
Early Modern English (1500–1800)
Modern Christian (1800–)
Modern Jewish (1853–)
Miscellaneous

The Anchor Bible project, consisting of a Commentary Series, Bible Dictionary, and Reference Library, is a scholarly and commercial co-venture begun in 1956, when individual volumes in the commentary series began production. Having initiated a new era of cooperation among scholars in biblical research, over 1,000 scholars — representing Jewish, Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Protestant, Muslim, secular, and other traditions — have now contributed to the project. Their works offer discussions that reflect a range of viewpoints across a wide theological spectrum. The Anchor Bible project continues to produce volumes that keep readers current on recent scholarship and are grounded in analysis. The works bring advances in science and technology to bear on biblical materials, making historical and linguistic knowledge related to the interpretation of the biblical record available to experts and students alike. As of 2005, more than 120 volumes had been published, each edited by David Noel Freedman, General Editor and published by Doubleday (part of Random House, Inc.). In 2007, Yale University Press purchased the Anchor Bible Series. Yale now publishes backlist titles and new titles as the Anchor Yale Bible Series.[1][2]

Contents

Anchor Bible Commentary Series

The Anchor Bible Commentary Series, created under the guidance of William Foxwell Albright (1891–1971), comprises a bookwise translation and exegesis of the Hebrew Bible, the New Testament and the Intertestamental Books (the Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Deuterocanon/the Protestant Apocrypha; not the books called by Catholics and Orthodox "Apocrypha", which are widely called by Protestants the Pseudepigrapha). For each biblical book, the series includes an original translation (with annotations, including alternative translations) of ancient texts, using modern knowledge of the ancient languages; overviews of the historical, critical, and literary evolution of the text; an outline of major themes and topics; a verse-by-verse commentary; treatment of competing scholarly theories; historical background; and photographs, illustrations, and maps of artifacts and places associated with biblical figures and sites. Lengthy or complex biblical books are covered in more than one volume.

A work in progress, as of 2006, the series has produced over 80 volumes, some of which are updates of earlier works. The series is 99% complete; the second half of Exodus was released in early December 2006, and the remaining volumes are in production. Others such as II Chronicles and Revelation are under contract.

Anchor Bible Dictionary

The Anchor Bible Dictionary contains more than 6,000 entries from 800 international scholars. It has illustrations and line-art throughout, and is also available on CD-ROM from Logos Bible Software or Accordance for the Macintosh. The "Dictionary" includes articles on the Dead Sea Scrolls, early Jewish-Christian relations, the historical Jesus, sociological and literary methods of biblical criticism, feminist hermeneutics, and numerous entries on archaeological sites, as well as bibliographies with citations listed individually at the end of each article.

Anchor Bible Reference Library

The Anchor Bible Reference Library is an open-ended series composed of more than thirty separate volumes with information about anthropology, archaeology, ecology, geography, history, languages, literature, philosophy, religions, and theology, among others.

Works in the Anchor Bible Commentary Series

Works in the Anchor Bible Commentary Series include:

Tanakh ~ Old Testament ~ Hebrew Bible

New Testament

Intertestamental Books ~ Apocrypha

Works in the Anchor Bible Reference Library

Works in the Anchor Bible Reference Library include:

v. 1, The Roots of the Problem and the Person. 1991. ISBN 0-385-26425-9
v. 2, Mentor, Message, and Miracles. 1994. ISBN 0-385-46992-6
v. 3, Companions and Competitors. 2001. ISBN 0-385-46993-4
v. 4, Law and Love, 2009. ISBN 0-300-14096-7

Notes

  1. ^ "Yale University Press Acquires Anchor Bible Series from Doubleday," Yale University Press, 2007
  2. ^ "The Anchor Yale Bible Series," Yale University Press, 2008.

See also

External links